Associated British Ports and the UK Government have agreed the terms for government funding support toward the development of floating offshore wind infrastructure at Port Talbot, subject to clearance by the Competition and Markets Authority.
The agreement was marked by a ministerial visit to the port by Secretary of State for Wales Jo Stevens and Minister for Energy Consumers Martin McCluskey, signalling strong government commitment to the project.
The development is intended to transform Port Talbot into a strategic industrial hub for floating offshore wind in the Celtic Sea, providing the large-scale manufacturing, assembly and marshalling capacity required to deliver gigawatt-scale projects.
The facility is expected to play a central role in enabling projects awarded through the recent Celtic Sea leasing round, supporting the UK’s ambitions to become a global leader in floating offshore wind technology.
The investment is projected to unlock hundreds of millions of pounds in industry capital, generate thousands of high-quality jobs and drive industrial regeneration across South Wales and the wider region.
The project complements ABP’s broader offshore wind portfolio, which includes recent agreements with RWE and Vestas alongside operational wind-related activities across its UK port network.
Henrik L. Pedersen, CEO of ABP, described the agreement on government support as a critical step toward further ABP investment at Port Talbot and the establishment of the port as a cornerstone of the Celtic Sea floating offshore wind industry.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband framed the development within the government’s clean energy mission, highlighting Wales’s natural advantages of deep waters and strong winds as assets for the emerging sector.
